People with Disabilities

Opportunities

We believe in the abilities of all of our professionals—and, we’re committed to hiring qualified individuals at all levels of our organization. Our goal at the BLS, as an employer of people with disabilities, is to be a model within the Federal Government and for companies in the private sector.

Special Appointing Authority

Recruiting people with disabilities is an important part of our hiring process at the BLS, and those with severe physical disabilities may choose to use the Excepted Service Special Appointing Authority. This authority provides a unique opportunity for you to demonstrate your potential to successfully perform the essential duties of a particular job.

The BLS may use this authority to appoint people with severe physical disabilities who:

• have demonstrated their ability to perform the job satisfactorily under a temporary appointment; OR,
• can provide documentation of their ability to perform the job.

Once you have satisfactorily completed two years of service with the BLS under this authority, you may qualify for conversion to the competitive service.

Application Process

If you have a disability and are qualified to apply for one of our current vacancies, simply indicate on your application that you are "applying under this Special Appointing Authority for people with disabilities." You will be asked to provide documentation of your disability.

You can also find more information about positions for people with disabilities on the U.S. Office of Personnel Management (OPM) Disability Employment website.

After you are hired

We are committed to offering full consideration to employees with disabilities for inclusion in developmental opportunities, such as training and special assignments designed to maintain and improve technical and management skills. We can also provide the reasonable accommodation you need to be successful on the job and in our many training courses.

Last Modified Date: May 10, 2023